Shares of Sturm Ruger & Co. (RGR) soared as much as 9% on Thursday after the gun maker said first-quarter orders were so strong the company is temporarily suspending new orders.

The Southport, Conn., company said it received orders for more than one million units in the first three months of 2012.

The shares were up $3.29, or 7.8%, at $45.59 in Thursday trading.

CEO Michael O. Fifer said in a statement late Wednesday that retailer programs initiated by the company were successful in attracting orders from larger gun retailers and independent wholesale distributors.

“Despite the company's continuing successful efforts to increase production rates, the incoming order rate exceeds our capacity to rapidly fulfill these orders. Consequently, the company has temporarily suspended the acceptance of new orders,” Fifer said in the statement.

Sturm Ruger hopes to be accepting orders again by the end of May, the company said.

Shares of the company’s rival gun manufacturer Smith & Wesson (NASDAQ:SWHC) have risen in sympathy, surging more than 12% to a 5-year high. The stock was recently up 88 cents, or 12.7%, at $7.78.